Book picks similar to
Starhold by J. Alan Field


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2012 Lunar Contact


J.D. Clarke - 2012
    It is the riches of our moon. Unfortunately their mining of the moon threatens Earth. An intrepid group of astronauts are given the mission of making contact with the aliens that have so far ignored humans. What follows is anything but what was planned, as they get swept up into a war between beings that travel space and operate on a technology beyond Newtonian physics.

Flying the Storm


C.S. Arnot - 2014
    Once the glorious flagship of the North Atlantic Union, it has become a hive of renegades and pirates, unchallenged in the skies over Eurasia. Like an angry god, it dominates wherever and whomever it chooses. Now it has chosen the Crimean Peninsula, the most lucrative trade hub on the Black Sea.In Sevastopol, two Gilgamesh marines are dead, and in seconds the merchant airman Aiden has become a wanted man. It doesn't matter that it was his pilot, Fredrick, who got them into the fight in the first place – Aiden finished it. Now they must run, taking their aircraft deep into the Caucasus Mountains to evade capture and execution. Through dogfights, shootouts and cock-ups the pair must make their escape, hounded by bounty hunters and slavers, driven to discover a secret that might – just might – change the balance of power forever… Flying the Storm is the debut novel from Scottish author C. S. Arnot. To follow the author, go to:facebook.com/csarnottwitter.com/csarnotcsarnot.wordpress.comsmashwords.com/profile/view/arnum91

Conviction


Tammy Salyer - 2014
     If Corps Tech Sergeant Aly Erikson wants to survive another day, she will have to give up everything: her identity, her rank, her attachment to her brothers-in-arms, and most of all, her guilt. After doing her duty as a member of a ground infantry squad tasked with “neutralizing” an insurrection by non-citizens on a mining planet, Erikson realizes that everything she thought the Corps stood for, thought she stood for, is crumbling away. Where is the honor, the justice, the spirit of law? When the enemies are nothing more than outclassed and outgunned dregs of the Algol System’s forgotten people, being part of their execution squad has put her as far from the ideals of justice as Erikson can imagine. Haunted by their ghosts, she struggles to maintain her military bearing until even that is suddenly ripped away in an act of terrorism that sends her, her brother, Tech Sergeant David Erikson, and another Corpsmember, Rebecca Soltznin, on the run on a hostile planet. Forced for the first time in ten years to blend in with a civilian population, the three are faced with a single choice: regroup with their brothers-in-arms or become deserters. For Aly, it’s easy; why go back to being a cog in the death machine the Corps is becoming? But for the other two, the price for making the wrong decision may be higher than they’re willing to pay. On the run, under attack from the scavengers who plague the system, and out of options, the three face conflict from every direction. If they can’t find a way to fight together, their chances for survival are less than zero. And for one of them, the best solution may come down to one simple act: betrayal. In this prequel to the popular Spectras Arise Trilogy, readers get an intimate look into the events that led Aly and David Erikson on their path from decorated and dedicated soldiers to black-market arms smugglers, and ultimately, to rebels against the Political and Capital Administration of the Advanced Worlds.

Echoes of Starlight


Eric Michael Craig - 2019
     No bodies. No evidence of an attack. Just gone. On what should have been a routine cargo run to the far edge of the Coalition, Captain Ethan Walker is carrying a payload of medical technology and two passengers returning home to Starlight Colony. When they arrive, they discover that everyone on the planet is missing. The company he works for wants him to leave immediately, but he’s obligated to report to FleetCom that the entire population has vanished. Captain MacKenna of the Magellan, tells him stay put until they can arrive to begin an official investigation. Caught between his legal responsibilities and the need to know what happened, Walker has to resist increasing pressure to defy orders. Unfortunately, his passengers make a decision that forces him into doing the one thing he can’t do. Captain Walker must risk his ship and crew to return to the surface even though it may ultimately cost him everything. Get the exciting opening book to the new Wings of Earth series.

Lucky's Marines: Books 1-6


Joshua James - 2019
    Lucky Lee Savage has to master his inner demons, manage the ambitions of his foul-mouthed AI, and figure out what is tearing a hole in the fabric of space-time before everything goes tits up. Lucky wouldn’t bet on the universe. One thing he will bet on: Somewhere, somehow, somebody is going to pay for all this. And he is going to be right there to pull the trigger. Includes the first 6 books in the Lucky's Marines series: Lucky Universe Lucky Legacy Lucky Empire Lucky Forever Lucky Invasion Lucky Revenge

Good Morning Vendemiatrix


H. Paul Honsinger - 2020
    In these labors, there is one friend that they can count on, day in and day out . . . he’s a constant companion in their headsets with the Smack and Crack, Sno Bro, and other music they love, as well offering a seemingly endless stream of friendship and encouragement: the morning DJ on Company Radio Channel D, Robin Whitlake. But, Robin is more than a warm human voice in the endless night, he is a man with a heroic, yet deadly and dangerous secret past that could condemn him to death at any time. Disfigured and aging rapidly, he must work harder and harder to project the youth and vitality that he brings to his broadcasts, all the while wondering when and if his past will catch up with him. On 14 January 2314, it did. A disaster in the mining colony brings the heroic and deadly elements of Robin’s past into sudden collision. Not only must he decide whether to subject himself to possible execution, Robin has to call upon all his professionalism as a broadcaster, the skills he spent decades honing in his former life, and the Morse code abilities of a red-headed, pig-tailed Space Scout named Elaine, in a desperate “Hail Mary” improvisation with thousands of innocent lives hanging in the balance. Good Morning Vendemiatrix is an 8800 word stand-alone novelette set in the “Man of War” universe. Fans of Honsinger’s other work will recognize the setting and be treated to a cameo appearance by a familiar character, while new readers will not find themselves “lost in space.” It is a humorous and exciting piece of shorter fiction written to be enjoyed by all Science Fiction readers.

Trial by Ice


Casey Calouette - 2013
    A man commands. Another finds his lost humanity. A fresh new military science fiction novel that’s more than just aliens and lasers. A brutal story. Gut wrenching. Visceral.When a catastrophic starship crash wipes out nearly 2000 troops, Midshipman William Grace finds himself commanding a handful of ravaged Soldiers and Marines. Pursued by the relentless cold, the survivors find treachery, betrayal, and war. Not only are their lives at stake but those of an entire planet.

Hard Drop


Will van der Vaart - 2013
    Their objective is classified, marked only by coordinates leading them into a deserted city at the heart of the fighting. From the beginning, everything possible goes wrong. A missile strike rocks the carrier mid-launch, and only a fraction of the unit reaches the surface alive.Outmanned, outgunned, and scattered, with a hard deadline to orbital bombardment looming, it is up to Drop Commander Tyco Hale to rally his troops and reach their objective. But what they find, hidden deep in the tunneled passages under the city, will change everything about what he fights for and what he believes in. With the unit in tatters and loyalties divided, the choice he makes in the dark will seal all of their fates - and much more besides.

Stars & Empire


Jay AllanDietmar Arthur Wehr - 2014
    Not on Earth. Not in space. Not on other worlds. Join first colonizers, space marines and rebel forces as they battle for domination against separate factions, alien nations and, sometimes, themselves across the galaxies. 10 of the most recognizable names in space opera today bring you a value-packed bundle like no other, containing everything from full-length novels to tantalizing episode starts to popular serials. The same works you see right on Amazon's bestseller lists. About 2200 pages of rocket-fueled adventure! BONUS: Most of the authors have provided special content — from deleted scenes to complete short stories — you won't find anywhere else! This LIMITED-EDITION bundle includes: MARINES (Crimson Worlds 1) - Jay Allan PENNSYLVANIA: Book 1 - Michael Bunker OMEGA RISING (Omega Force 1) - Joshua Dalzelle FOREVER GATE: Part 1 - Isaac Hooke THE EMPIRE'S CORPS - Christopher G. Nuttall REBEL - Edward W. Robertson DARK SPACE: Book 1 - Jasper T. Scott THE TERRAN GAMBIT (Episode #1: The Pax Humana Saga) - Endi Webb THE SYNCHRONICITY WAR: Part I - Dietmar Arthur Wehr GALACTIC EMPIRE WARS: Destruction - Raymond L. Weil

Blackthorn


Nate Johnson - 2017
     Petty Officer Logan is tasked with escorting Kaylee Williams through the rough streets of Montlake. Little did he know a simple assignment would morph into a race across the galaxy. If he wants to get her to safety, Miller must avoid pirates, the Imperial Navy, and the hazards of deep space. All while keeping a decrepit starship from blowing up along the way. Kaylee Williams desperately needs to get to Taurus. The future of the Empire rests with the secret information she carries. But can she trust this strange man to help her? But, if she can’t trust a man who repeatedly risks his life for her. Then who can she trust.

Pete, Popeye and Olive (Privateer Tales Shorts Book 2)


Jamie McFarlane - 2016
    When an opportunity to join the Mechanized Infantry presents itself, Pete is first in line. He knows that he's going to get shot at one way or another, but the idea of sitting in a warm and more importantly, dry mechanized suit appeals to him almost beyond reason. While still training in the jungle, Pete's squad is called out to intervene in a skirmish in a nearby village. Of course, the Marines haven't seen fit to certify his squad with ordnance. The fact that they'll be up against a platoon of squishies doesn't convince him that's it's any better of an idea and things turn quickly to crap when they discover the squishies are protected by grav-tanks. Pete, Popeye and Olive is a fast paced, short-story with plenty of action.

Echoes of an Alien Sky


James P. Hogan - 2007
    With the first colonists already establishing themselves, Kyal Reen arrives to join the Venusian scientific & archaelogical teams that are working to reconstruct the story of the race that once flourished there.

The Terran Gambit


Endi Webb - 2014
    As a reckless space jock in the Resistance fleet he lives for the thrill, and to take out as many Imperial bogeys as he can. At least, more than his buddies.But with victory in sight, the Imperials thwart the Resistance in a surprise show of devastating force, and Dallas burns from a thermonuclear blast--millions die--a merciless example of what happens to upstart worlds in the Pax Humana.A DESPERATE PLANThe Resistance goes underground to rebuild its strength, and in the shadows, the leadership devises a daring plan to strike right at the Empire's heart in a final, desperate bid for freedom.A plan that will send Jake Mercer right to where he doesn't belong: The captain's chair of the most advanced warship in the galaxy, facing down a psychopathic Imperial Admiral bent on utterly destroying the Resistance, and Earth itself.But first he has to survive.(Content disclaimer: There are marines and fighter pilots in this book, and as such it contains some salty language and crude jokes. Also, mild sexual situations, and violence. Readers who are sensitive to these things, please contact me and we'll work something out.)The Terran Gambit is the first episode in a series of 10 books in the Pax Humana Saga.Coming soon:Chains of Destiny in May 2014Into the Void -- July 2014The Sons of Oberon -- August/September 2014

Blackhawk


Jay Allan - 2016
    A wanderer, a man running from a dark and sinister past. A genetically-engineered warrior, a capable and accomplished killer, he is also a lost soul, a man who has fled to the deepest reaches of space seeking his true identity.The Far Stars. The farthest extent of human habitation in the galaxy, a sector of a hundred inhabited worlds, it is a dangerous expanse full of pirates, mercenaries, and cutthroats. The sector is a rough and rugged frontier, lying beyond the darkness of the great Void, and the only place in all the vastness of space where men live free of the brutal empire that rules the rest of mankind.Celtiboria. Once the premier world in the Far Stars, now a planet wracked by centuries of brutal civil war, driven to the edge of a dark age by the unending struggle among its Warlords for power and control.Augustin Lucerne. One of Celtiboria’s feuding Warlords, a brilliant tactician and a respected commander. Lucerne is something rare on Celtiboria, in all of the Far Stars…an honorable man who fights not for personal aggrandizement but to save his world.When Blackhawk meets Lucerne he comes to a stark choice. He can continue on his way, a drifter wandering from world to world, alone and without purpose. Or he can join with Lucerne, fight at the Warlord’s side in desperate battle for survival. But whatever he chooses, he will have to face the demons that have pursued him across the stars, the dark version of himself that still lives deep within his mind.Blackhawk is a prequel to the Far Stars series, set twenty years before the existing books. For those who have read the Far Stars trilogy, this is the origin story of Arkarin Blackhawk. And for those who have not read the existing Far Stars series, Blackhawk is an ideal place to start.The Far Stars SeriesShadow of EmpireEnemy in the DarkFuneral GamesAlso by Jay AllanCrimson Worlds SeriesMarines (Crimson Worlds I)The Cost of Victory (Crimson Worlds II)A Little Rebellion (Crimson Worlds III)The First Imperium (Crimson Worlds IV)The Line Must Hold (Crimson Worlds V)To Hell’s Heart (Crimson Worlds VI)The Shadow Legions (Crimson Worlds VII)Even Legends Die (Crimson Worlds VIII)The Fall (Crimson Worlds IX)Tombstone (Crimson Worlds Prequel Novella)Bitter Glory (Crimson Worlds Prequel Novella) The Gates of Hell (Crimson Worlds Prequel Novella)Crimson Worlds Successors SeriesMERCS (Successors I)The Prisoner of Eldaron (Successors II)The Black Flag (Successors III - Coming Summer 2016)Crimson Worlds Refugees SeriesInto the Darkness (Refugees I)Shadows of the Gods (Refugees II)Revenge of the Ancients (Refugees III)Portal Wars SeriesGehenna Dawn (Portal Wars I)The Ten Thousand (Portal Wars II)Homefront (Portal Wars III)Pendragon ChroniclesThe Dragon’s Banne

Breaking Through


Josh Hayes - 2014
    After a mysterious rift in the fabric of spacetime strands him on an alien world, John must join forces with some unlikely childhood heroes to have any chance of surviving and soon discovers that this strange new world isn’t that alien after all.Someone has been here before and found a way back to tell about it. There is hope, but this is not the fairy tale he knows and John will have to fight if he wants to get home.